M&A Science

Brian Matthews, CEO at ITEL

In today's highly competitive business landscape, companies are constantly looking for ways to enhance their capabilities and maintain their edge. With so many competitors in the market, how can a company stand out and reduce customer churn?

In this episode of the M&A Science Podcast, Brian Matthews, CEO at ITEL, discusses his value chain ecosystem approach that can drive stability and growth to businesses.

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This episode is sponsored by the M&A Science Academy, DealRoom, and FirmRoom.

To join our growing online community of M&A practitioners, mascience.com/academy.

Ready to take your M&A to the next level with software made to manage each stage of the deal process? See how DealRoom can facilitate your next deal at dealroom.net.

FirmRoom provides 80% cost savings over VDRs that bill by page and delivers a far better user experience. Sign up in under 2 minutes by going to firmroom.com.

00:00 Intro

04:20 Value chain ecosystem approach

08:23 Real-life example of a value chain ecosystem

12:05 Emphasis on the exit planning

13:51 Traditional bank exit

16:50 Benefits of an ecosystem approach

18:47 Bringing fresh perspectives

21:56 Ecosystem Playbook

23:58 How to create a value chain ecosystem

30:22 Considering the maturity of partner ecosystems of companies

37:19 Valuation

38:32 Best practices on deal execution

40:14 Transparency rules

42:18 Reading between the lines

43:09 Craziest thing in M&A

Joe Covey, a serial CEO and acquirer, and investor since 1992.

Matthew Davidge, the co-owner of the NBC Affiliate WVNC (Watertown, NY) and several other stations around the country.

In big companies, some business units may not perform well and might be overlooked. It can be helpful for the company to find a more suitable owner for these units. At the same time, buyers can take advantage of these opportunities to improve the businesses and maximize their potential.

In this episode of the M&A Science podcast, we will explore the experiences of Josh Covey, a successful CEO, acquirer, and investor, and Matthew Davidge, co-owner of NBC Affiliate WVNC, as they buy and develop these businesses with the goal of exiting in the future.

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This episode is sponsored by the M&A Science Academy. If you're looking to improve your in-house training, we have corporate training plans provided.

Give your team members access to the best-in-class courses, templates, and networking opportunities in the industry. Our academy was designed to lead practitioners to outdo M&A practices. It's also a great way to show your support for M&A Science. If you're interested in learning more about individual or team plans, visit this page.

00:00 Intro

06:43 Buy-side carve-out deals

10:35 Key approach to due diligence

11:52 Unbinding a company

13:51 Why carve-outs are difficult

15:41 Conversations with the right people

19:05 Key things to consider when doing a carve-out

22:58 Walking away from a deal

23:59 Considerations in the carve-out model

26:32 Challenges on the buy-side of carve-outs

27:58 You have to surround yourself

30:21 Evolving the operating model

34:37 The right time to exit

35:55 How working with an investment bank is different

37:48 Bank process vs. Proprietary deals

39:21 Key lessons

40:55 Timing

42:14 Communications

43:34 Alignment on post-close operations

45:27 Advice for first-time sellers

47:57 Negotiation considerations

49:59 Craziest thing in M&A

Andrew Morbitzer, VP/Head of Corporate Development at Typeform

There are many different reasons why companies buy other entities. Traditionally, acquirers have focused more on the financial aspect of the target company. However, experience have shown that not all acquisitions are the same, and must be executed properly against their strategy.

In this episode of the M&A Science Podcast, Andrew Morbitzer, VP/Head of Corporate Development at Typeform, discusses how to execute product-based acquisitions.

______________________________________________________________________________

This episode is sponsored by the M&A Science Academy. If you're looking to improve your in-house training, we have corporate training plans provided.

Give your team members access to the best in class courses, templates, and networking opportunities in the industry. Our academy was designed to lead practitioners with the outdo with the M&A practices. It's also a great way to show your support for M&A Science. If you're interested in learning more about individual or team plans, visit this page.

Episode Timestamps

00:00 Intro 05:35 From engineering product to M&A 09:21 Difference of Product based acquisition 16:04 Gauging Product Market fit 22:07 Direct Observation 26:15 Permission from the company 28:21 Overlap analysis during product-based acquisition 31:35 Key elements for deal success 36:16 Agile M&A 37:51 Integrating engineering teams 40:53 Tips for product acquisition 42:41 Integrating competing products 47:00 Craziest thing in M&A

Nate Lemmerman, Senior Vice President, Corporate Development at Cast & Crew

To perform M&A at the highest level, an ever-evolving M&A function is necessary. Organizations must focus on refining their strategies, processes, and team dynamics to ensure they can effectively navigate the complexities of each deal.

In this episode of the M&A Science Podcast, Nate Lemmerman, Senior Vice President of Corporate Development at Cast & Crew, shares his experience and tips on how to build your M&A muscle.

____________________________________________________________________

This episode is sponsored by the M&A Science Academy, DealRoom, and FirmRoom.

To join our growing online community of M&A practitioners, visit www.mascience.com/academy. Don't forget to use code "podcast" at checkout.

Ready to take your M&A to the next level with software made to manage each stage of the deal process? See how DealRoom can facilitate your next deal at www.dealroom.net.

FirmRoom provides 80% cost savings over VDRs that bill by page and delivers a far better user experience to boot. Sign up in under 2 minutes by going to www.firmroom.com

00:00 Intro

06:10 Building an M&A function from scratch

09:05 Steps to building an M&A muscle

12:17 The strategy

15:38 Process and execution structure

22:16 Critical things to consider before signing a deal

26:04 Hiring people for the M&A team

28:30 Building the diligence muscle

30:01 People alignment in M&A

32:20 Building the integration muscle

35:39 Best practices when doing deals

37:55 Craziest thing in M&A

Ritika Butani, Head of Corporate Development at Toast

This episode is sponsored by the M&A Science Academy, DealRoom, and FirmRoom.

To join our growing online community of M&A practitioners, visit https://www.mascience.com/academy. Don't forget to use code "podcast" at checkout.

Ready to take your M&A to the next level with software made to manage each stage of the deal process? See how DealRoom can facilitate your next deal at https://www.dealroom.net

FirmRoom provides 80% cost savings over VDRs that bill by page and delivers a far better user experience to boot. Sign up in under 2 minutes by going to https://www.firmroom.com

00:00 Intro

04:22 Secrets to overcoming hurdles

05:51 Challenges in M&A

09:58 Complexities of smaller deals

12:43 Handling people in a smaller company

13:50 Cultural assessment

15:24 Culture ends up killing the deal

17:03 Tax Issues

18:58 HR issues

20:44 Contractual Issues

23:41 Change of control and assignment

25:05 Risks Mitigation

26:58 Finding good lawyers

28:34 Integration planning

30:05 Integration planning vs. hypothesis

32:44 No dedicated integration lead

34:34 Principles of doing deals

37:31 Non-negotiables

39:40 Dealing with issues

41:44 Surprise Issues

44:08 Craziest thing in M&A

Finn Haley, SVP, Corporate Development at Edwards Lifesciences (NYSE:EW)

This episode is sponsored by the M&A Science Academy, DealRoom, and FirmRoom.

To join our growing online community of M&A practitioners, visit https://www.mascience.com/academy. Don't forget to use code "podcast" at checkout.

Ready to take your M&A to the next level with software made to manage each stage of the deal process? See how DealRoom can facilitate your next deal at https://www.dealroom.net

FirmRoom provides 80% cost savings over VDRs that bill by page and delivers a far better user experience to boot. Sign up in under 2 minutes by going to https://www.firmroom.com

00:00 Intro

08:53 Option structure

14:04 Exit cap

16:11 Drivers for the structure

18:28 Alignment with the strategy

20:35 Monitoring progress and milestones

22:16 Moving fast

24:08 Failed startups

26:16 Risks

30:09 Exercising the option

33:54 Why deals don't push through

38:53 Innovation

40:13 Approaching a company for the buy-to-build option structure

43:20 Craziest thing in M&A

Mark Legaspi, Director, Legal - Corporate at LinkedIn

Hello M&A Friends, if you're looking to improve your in-house training, we have corporate training plans provided through M&A Science Academy.

Give your team members access to the best in class courses, templates, and networking opportunities in the industry. Our academy was designed to lead practitioners with the outdo with the M&A practices.

If you're interested in learning more about individual or team plans, go to www.mascience.com/academy. It's also a great way to show your support for M&A Science. Again, that's mascience.com/academy.

00:00 Intro

02:53 Key Considerations for M&A in 2023

05:22 Regulatory Challenges

09:41 Effect of Regulatory on Negotiations

15:43 Managing Value

17:51 Other Considerations Regarding Regulatory Risks

20:38 Suing the Regulatory Bodies

32:18 Regulatory Effects on Employees

34:08 Other Deal Killers in M&A

38:04 Trademarks Killing Deals

40:30 Market situation with IPs

42:22 Deal Breaks Due to IP

43:48 Advice for Deal Teams

46:39 Craziest thing in M&A

David Hindley, VP of Corp Dev at Autodesk (NASDAQ: ADSK)

This episode is sponsored by the M&A Science Academy, DealRoom, and FirmRoom.

To join our growing online community of M&A practitioners, visit https://www.mascience.com/academy. Don't forget to use the code "podcast" at checkout.

Ready to take your M&A to the next level with software made to manage each stage of the deal process? See how DealRoom can facilitate your next deal at https://www.dealroom.net.

FirmRoom provides 80% cost savings over VDRs that bill by page and delivers a far better user experience to boot. Sign up in under 2 minutes by going to https://www.firmroom.com

Episode Timestamps

00:00 Intro

05:00 The Evolution of M&A Functions

06:48 Deal experience as a Banker vs. Corp Dev

15:04 Leading an evolving M&A function

16:13 How the strategy evolved

18:07 Scoring opportunities

19:28 Speeding up the evolution for efficiency

21:31 Working with functional leads

22:29 Aligning the functions

24:10 Business Units

25:08 Corporate Development structure

27:57 Accountability

29:11 Working with integration folks

32:41 Evolution of the governance model

33:56 Success metrics

35:42 Retaining deal learnings

37:04 The hiring process

40:19 Lessons learned

41:26 Craziest thing in M&A

Staci van Schagen, Head of M&A Integration & Disentanglement at Philips

This episode is sponsored by FirmRoom, the fastest virtual data room used to get deals done. Leave the pay-per-page world behind by going to https://firmroom.com/

Episode Timestamps

00:00 Intro

05:40 Running global Integrations

08:08 Adapting to different cultures

09:37 Fostering safety in IMO

11:31 Continuous Improvement

13:57 Delivering integration outcomes

18:16 Dealing with uncertainties during integration planning

20:52 Threshold for mistakes during integration

24:56 Using reflections to run integration

28:57 Deal sizes affecting preparations

31:51 Upskilling scenario planning

32:53 Craziest thing in M&A

Jeff Wald, Co-founder of Bento Engine

This episode is sponsored by the M&A Science Academy, DealRoom, and FirmRoom.

To join our growing online community of M&A practitioners, visit https://www.mascience.com/academy. Don't forget to use code "podcast" at checkout.

Ready to take your M&A to the next level with software made to manage each stage of the deal process? See how DealRoom can facilitate your next deal at https://www.dealroom.net

FirmRoom provides 80% cost savings over VDRs that bill by page and delivers a far better user experience to boot. Sign up in under 2 minutes by going to https://www.firmroom.com

00:00 Intro

03:44 Best practices during exits

04:41 Thinking about an exit

09:54 Engaging with investors

14:13 The path to being acquired

18:24 Tips for Outreach

19:49 First conversation

25:11 Key people when executing deals

29:00 Negotiating Law firm prices

30:16 Negotiating LOI

34:37 Confirmatory due diligence

37:06 Communicating with employees

39:13 Announce day

44:55 Integration

47:46 Craziest thing in M&A